More Than You Know. Closer Than You Think.
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Nithya Krishnan moved to the Southern Finger Lakes from the teeming metropolis of Mumbai, India, in June 2001.
“A leap of love brought me here,” she said. I was engaged to my now-husband and planned to join him in Boston, where he had planned to pursue studies at MIT. But he got a job at Corning, Inc.” At that point, Nithya’s only Corning frame of reference was Corning, NY, as the home of Corningware and Pyrex and a stop for travelers on their way to Niagara Falls.
“I was told that it was a small town nestled in a picturesque valley with lakes and that it was the stark opposite of Mumbai,” she said, a point no one can argue. “As a city girl, my only concern was how I would cope in a town without consistent public transport access. But I was attracted by the notion of moving to a place free of urban pollution and high cost of living,” she recalls.
However, Nithya recalls her first two years here as challenging as she tried to embrace a whole new culture. Leaving family, friends, and familiar city life was tough, she remembers, but she found excitement in starting a new life to set up with someone who had the makings of a good life partner, an aspect that made it easier for her to make the move.
“Eventually, I found my rhythm,” she said. “What has changed for me is my outlook on life, and I’m ready for any new adventure that may come my way no matter how old I get!”
Today, Nithya lives in Painted Post, NY. “I married my childhood friend and was blessed with two unique teenage boys, 19 and 13.”
Nithya found work as a caregiver at a daycare and then chose to be a stay-at-home mom for eight years. “Being in a small town with close-knit communities has been a blessing in helping me find my niche and purpose, be it in my professional or personal life.”
She is an avid foodie. In the 1980s and 90s, she traveled with her parents, trying out new places to eat and experiencing local fare. “I recently got into creating food-related content on social media,” she said.
Nithya now works as an independent contractor teaching cooking and Zumba classes. “I recently entered the food service industry with a catering permit to offer pop-up dinners, which I prep from a local commercial kitchen space,” Nithya said. “My specialty is fresh homestyle Indian cuisine.” She added, “My current career choices resulted from friends encouraging me to follow my passion for food and enthusiasm for life itself.” (You can get updates about Nithya’s upcoming pop-ups and reserve your dish by following Cool Desi Aunty Kitchen.)
She describes finding it more liberating to be herself here, much more so than she did growing up, which she describes as a bubble of Indian culture in India and Nigeria, where she spent her younger years. “I lived in a cutthroat urban jungle where it was survival of the fittest,” she said. “Here in this small community, I feel there is more of a focus on success for being passionate about something that you are willing to take seriously versus in Indian culture where your success is measured on how much money you make or how affluent you are.”
Nithya enjoys the four seasons of the Southern Finger Lakes, especially after growing up in places where she only experienced two seasons, which she described as summer and monsoon. “I try my best to get outdoors and revel in nature with walks in the spring and summer,” she said, adding, “When we aren’t traveling visiting family or friends, I enjoy spending my days at home.”
A normal day for her is never the same. Between managing her family, class schedules, and food business, Nithya finds herself pretty busy. “Still,” she said, “I like to keep my day flexible to allow small moments where I can sit and slow down.”
Nithya advises anyone considering relocating to FLX to be ready to go with the flow but keep their mind and heart open to what they may find living here. “I’d also like them to know that there is a very diverse and vibrant community of people from many cultures here and that they have to seek out the opportunities to explore rather than wait for them to come forth.”
She also encourages anyone considering this region as a potential place to live and work to engage with the local landscape by visiting and scoping out what it has to offer.
Thank you, Nithya, for sharing your story! Read more SoFLX stories to learn about life, work, and play in the Southern Finger Lakes.
